


Earl Grey

by kaibagirl



Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M, Victorian era
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-02
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2020-02-16 04:56:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 4,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18684586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaibagirl/pseuds/kaibagirl
Summary: The young Earl, Leon Grey, and his butler, James.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this was written two years ago now, and it's kind of bad but I'll try to come back to fix some mistakes when I can.

“Wake up young lord, it is morning.” A voice said. Leo rubbed his eyes as he sat up.  
“James, what is the schedule for today?” He asked the butler, sleepily.  
“Well, young master, today you must see the queen. She has requested to see you. That will take place at noon, my lord. When you get back, there is paperwork you will attend to.” The butler said to the young earl.

Leo rolled his eyes as he ate his scones and drank his favorite tea, Earl Grey.

Within seconds, a crash was heard coming from downstairs, in the kitchen.  
James bowed and, before you could blink, disappeared.

Down in the kitchen, James scolded the clumsy maid, Felicia, as she picked up the broken plates.

“My my, it seems as if I have to order new plates.. Again.” The butler sighed.  
“I’m so sorry James!” Felicia said sadly. James sighed again. Before he could say anything, perhaps to scold her, the Earl called for him.

James turned on his heel and left.

“James, it is almost noon and I must go soon.” said Leo, frowning.  
“Yes, my lord. I am sorry for the delay.” James said, a smirk appearing on his face.  
Leo simply rolled his eyes.  
*At Her Majesty’s castle*  
Leo is bored out of his mind.  
‘Tea with the queen.. So boring.. What if I- No, too dangerous. It will probably give the old woman a heart attack.. Ugh.’ He thought.  
“Lord Grey? Can you hear me?” Asked the Queen.

“Huh? I..” Leo snapped back to reality.  
“I apologize, your Majesty, but I’m afraid the young Lord has a lot on his mind lately, and he did not get enough sleep last night.” Said James, with a spellbinding smile that, although only the Earl and the maid can see through, is fake.


	2. Chapter 2

After tea with the queen, the Earl went back to his estate. He had ‘Piles upon piles of paperwork!’ as James put it. James, however, had absolutely no dishes to clean. Instead, he needs to buy more, for Felicia broke all of them. That put both the Earl and the butler in a foul mood.

James, carrying a tray of cake and tea, knocked on the door to the Earl’s work room. No answer was heard from the inside.  
“Young master?” James said, getting worried.  
No answer.  
¨Young master, may I come in?”  
No answer.  
“I’ve brought tea and sweets master, may I please come in?”  
No answer. If his young master doesn’t answer, he is asleep.

Aggravated, James turned the doorknob and stepped into the room. To his surprise, Leo was not there. The butler dropped the tray, running out of the room. He searched the entire mansion, which is quite large, but still couldn’t find him.

Eventually, he ran into Felicia. “Felicia, have you seen the young master?” asked James. “Yes, actually he ran off to some errands. He said to give you this note.” Felicia said, holding out an envelope. Curiously, James snatched the envelope from her, opening it. He eyed it, reading it silently.

 

  
James,  
By now I am sure you have searched the estate at least 5 times, but don’t worry, I am perfectly fine. I have run off to some errands and I will be back by 6 pm.  
-Leon Grey

James sighed in relief, then looked at Felicia and said “My my, it seems as though it was all just a… prank. Is that correct?” Felicia giggled and nodded. The two continued about their day, waiting for Leo to come back, hopefully safe and sound.


	3. Chapter 3

Many hours have passed, and dusk was falling. The Earl still hasn’t arrived home, to the Grey Manor. James was getting worried.

Suddenly, Felicia came running inside the manor, panting.

“What is it?” asked James  
“The *pant* Earl’s carriage *pant* has *pant* arrived,” said Felicia, struggling to catch her breath. “He is not *pant* inside of it” she added.  
“What?!” said a wide-eyed James.  
“Go *pant* look” answered Felicia.

James ran down to the main entrance, and stepped outside, looking for the carriage.  
Felicia was right, the carriage was empty. The most peculiar thing was the letter inside it, for it was not the Earl’s handwriting.

Greetings servants,  
I bet you are wondering where your precious master is, and if he is alright. Don’t worry your pretty little heads about it, he is perfectly safe. However, if I don’t get 746230.00 British Pounds by tomorrow, young master Leon won’t be so safe.

The letter wasn’t signed, but it did say to deliver the money to an abandoned building on 23rd street. James ran upstairs to show the letter to Felicia.

“Shall we tell the authorities? Or perhaps one of the detectives? Police?” Asked Felicia, troubled.  
“No, we shall do as they tell us to.” Replied James.  
“How can we? It’s not our money.”  
“I will go and give it to them.”  
“No! You can’t. It’s far too dangerous.”  
“The decision is set.” said a proud James.


	4. Chapter 4

As James got ready to go, Felicia kept trying to persuade him to stay. Finally James had had enough. He looked at her sternly, and said:

“If I don’t go, the young master will be in danger. I cannot allow that to happen.”

Felicia kept quiet after that. James made to leave the house, and then he was stopped by her.

“Felicia, let me go through. If you don’t, I will push you aside with force.” said James, sick of the delay.  
“I’m going with you.” replied Felicia, quite fearlessly.  
“No, you’re not. If I don’t come back with the young master, you are going to have to explain to Sir and Lady Grey what has happened.”  
“But you ARE coming back, aren’t you?”  
“I hope I do. If I don’t, at least I’d have died protecting the young master. I will not back down.”

At that moment, Felicia’s eyes started to water, and then she produced a knife from her pocket. James looked confused.

“Take it.” said Felicia, daring him to argue.  
“Felicia, you’re being ridiculous! Don’t you think I have a plan? I have a knife in both sleeves, one more in my jacket, and then one is attached to each of my shoes.” Replied an annoyed James.

Felicia didn’t look surprised. Instead, she simply took his hand and shoved the handle into it. Then to James’ surprise, she stepped out of the way.

James started walking to the exit, stopping to examine the knife. It was a pocket knife, made in an elegant fashion. It was a pale blue color, with a lovely sapphire on the handle. The blade was silver. James thought it was marvelous.

He then ran to the place they told him to go to. When he got there he didn’t look like he even broke a sweat.

Then, he started walking into the building.


	5. Chapter 5

As James walked, he ran through his plan one more time. The plan was basically just “fake it till you make it”, which means he would cooperate, but insist on seeing Leo first, then escaping. That way, no one had to get hurt. There were indeed major flaws in that plan, but it’s the best one James could think of in that limited time.

Like the gentleman he was, he knocked on the door of the building. It was answered by a burly man, with matted, greyish hair.

“Are you from the Grey manor?” he asked, in a deep voice.  
“Of course he is, Ash! Can’t you see the way he is dressed?” asked a loud, booming voice from within.  
“Let him in.” said another, quieter, commanding voice.

The one named Ash let the butler in. Immediately, James noticed how dark it was, with just a bit of light. There was a ruined rug underneath a ugly, brown cloth couch. The man sitting on it looked ragged, especially compared to James, who was tall and had jet black hair and charming green eyes. The ragged man had bleached blond hair, and looked to be in his 50’s. Perhaps the man had once been handsome, but he certainly wasn’t now.

“Good evening, are you the rouges who have kidnapped my young master?” asked James in an alarmingly polite tone, but his eyes were shooting daggers.

“Why yes, of course. Now, hand over the money.” mocked the one with the loud voice.  
“Yes, yes. How could I forget? But first, allow me to see my young master.” responded James, with natural dignity.  
“You’re not the one in control her lad, so hand over the money.” said Ash, in his deep voice.  
“As sorry I am to object, I must say that I am. After all, I am the one holding all the money. Besides, what will Sir and Lady Grey say when they find their son is missing?” said James.  
“Does it matter lad? Hand over the money and you won’t get hurt.” responded Ash.  
“First I must see the young master.” said James, firmly.

There was a moment of silence. Then, James spoke once more.

“You do realize that we could go on like this for days, arguing over who will go first, and you never getting the money. Why not just agree to my terms? I see little point in arguing.”

“Fine. Ash, bring the boy.” said the commanding one.

The rogues looked surprised, while James merely smirked.

“What are you waiting for? Get the boy!” their leader said.

Ash snapped out of his shock, and walked over to an unseen door, then, he went inside.


	6. Chapter 6

James heard the light click on, and then there was a scream. For a terrible moment, James thought it was Leo screaming, but then he realized that it was Ash.

“What’s the delay Ash? Was there a mouse scurrying across the floor?” mocked the one with a booming voice.

“Zip it, Tristan,” replied Ash. “The rich boy ain’t there.”  
“What are you talking about? That’s impossible!” said the leader, disbelief etched on his face.  
“Come look then!” exclaimed Ash.

The leader, with a groan, stood up unwillingly and walked to the room. As soon as he was inside, something fell from the ceiling - right on to the leader, who screamed very loudly, probably from the pain.

“Hello, and thanks for letting me land on you” said Leo, to everyone’s surprise, and got up gracefully, “I got a bit tired from holding on to the little handle on the ceiling, so I let go, and you just happened to be there.”

Turning around, Leo grinned at James.

“Why hello, young master.” Said James.  
“Hello James, what brings you here?” replied Leo, rather sarcastically.  
“Shall we leave, young master?”  
“Why yes, of course. I’ve certainly had enough of this utter rubbish of a house.”  
“What, ya think we’re gonna just let ‘cha leave?” said Tristan.  
“Of course not, but I still have some hope in this world.” said James very sarcastically.

He picked Leo up and ran through the door, and the rogues didn’t even have time to blink.  
When they reached the Grey manor, they found Felicia standing at the front door. She had burst into tears at the sight of them. James gently put Leo down, and ran over Felicia - and embraced her.

“My my, what’s the matter?” said James, sincerely concerned.  
“I was so worried.” replied Felicia, sobbing and gazing at James through her tears.

Leo looked utterly disgusted. He walked past them and entered the house, leaving James and Felicia standing alone.


	7. Chapter 7

It was yet another normal day at the Grey manor - until it wasn’t. It all started with Leo completing work in his office, while James and Felicia were cleaning. Suddenly, the bell rang at the door. It was an apocalypse - everyone was hurrying toward the door. Leo got to the door first and looked through the window, then he ran away. Felicia came next and ran away as well, perhaps to the kitchen.

Finally James came. He opened the door, and two people were standing there. One was a woman, with dark brown hair and blue eyes. The other was a man, with equally dark hair, and blue eyes. James recognized them at once as Lord and Lady Grey - Leo’s parents - which is understandable due to the fact that he looks a lot like them, with dark brown hair and deep blue eyes, and a pale complexion.

“Hello, Lord and Lady Grey,” he said, bowing to each of them, “How do you do?”  
“Very well, and you?” Said Lady Grey, with the most bright, sincere smile on her face.  
“As well as could be, thank you.” Responded James.

Just at that moment, James noticed a third person standing behind Lord and Lady Grey. It was a female, around Leo’s age, whom is 12, and whom looked exactly like him. The two Grey parents must have noticed James’ shock, because they smiled.

“I see you’ve noticed the final Grey family member. This is Leon’s twin sister, Lillian.” responded Lord Grey to James’ shocked silence.

Lillian was a pretty young girl, and obviously, as she is Leon’s twin sister, she had dark brown hair and deep blue eyes. When she spoke, it was rather like honey - metaphorically speaking - and perhaps like a princess. Leon’s voice was lower, which made sense because he was a boy, but when he spoke it sounded… like a noble would speak, or perhaps a king, with deep seriousness.

“Hello, sir, my name is Lillian Grey. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” She greeted James.  
“Why hello, Lillian, nice to meet you as well.” replied James.  
“Pardon me, James, but we really must see Leo. He needs to meet his twin - they have never met before - and we need to speak to both of you about certain arrangements, regarding Lillian, of course.” said Lord Grey.  
“Of course my Lord, please follow me to the sitting room.” said James, moving out of the doorway.

The three members of the Grey family walked inside the mansion and followed James to the sitting room, which was painted white with darker furniture and dark blue curtains. They sat down.

“Pardon, I will be right back with young master Leon.” said James, bowing once more, and then walking out of the room.

James automatically went to Leo’s work room, where he found Leo pacing back and forth.

“Hello young master, please follow me. Your parents want to see you, and they have a certain… surprise.” said James, fighting the urge to grin.  
“I already know what it is! I saw a girl, who looked just like me, so obviously I had a twin that I never knew about!” said Leo, annoyed for some unknown reason.  
“Well, you’ll have to meet her. Again, I ask, please follow me.”  
“Fine.” replied Leo, with an oddly scared voice.

Leo followed James to the door of the sitting room, but a fair distance from that certain room, James put his hand on Leo’s back and crouched down, saying, “You’ll like her, you’ll see.”. That, oddly enough, comforted Leo.


	8. Chapter 8

Leo walked into the sitting room, and James followed him closely. As soon as her son walked into the room, she stood up with the brightest, happiest face James had ever seen. Lord Grey, however, was shocked at how much Leo had grown. That reminded Leo of the day he was left with James.

~ Flashback ~

“Mother, where are we going?” asked a seven year old Leon Grey.  
“We are going to our pretty estate! Remember how much you liked it last time you were there?” answered his mother, who’s name was Claudia Grey.  
“Yes, mum, but why are we going there? Is it to check the state of the building again?” asked the young Leo, whom was a very curious child.  
“You’ll see when we get there.”

Leo, by age 4, already had a very wide vocabulary, and understood many things, such as mathematics, politics, and even how to run a successful business. He was a very intelligent child who loved to read. He never really enjoyed playing with the other children, and found them very loud and tiresome. He was a fit child, who could run miles if necessary, but did not enjoy games the other children liked, such as sports involving a ball. He prefered strategy board games, such as chess, and card games were too easy to him. Therefore, being a genius at such a young age, knew something was suspicious about the way his mother was acting, but understood that the topic of why they were going to the estate was dismissed, and did not question further.

When they arrived to the estate, Leo noticed a tall young man, with raven black hair, and apparently green eyes, whom he estimated was about 16 years old, was waiting for them. He stood in front of the estate, trying to not be nervous, while looking very elegant. Leo noted that he was wearing a butler’s clothes. That got Leo to be even more suspicious. As they got out of the carriage, the man walked over to them. He bowed.

“Why hello, I assume you must be Lord and Lady Grey, and if i’m not mistaken, you must be the young master Leon.” he said, politely.  
“Yes, and I assume you are James Vincent. Correct?” replied Lord Grey.  
“Yes, that is correct, milord.” The man named James, answered.  
“Well then, let us discuss the… er… arrangement.” said Lord Grey.

They went inside, and Leo was left with his mother. They sat on a bench, both reading the books they brought with them.

“Mother, what arrangement are father and… James, was it? Talking about?” Leo asked, not sure if he would get the answer.  
“Well, honey, your father and I have been thinking about it for quite a while now, and we’ve taken forever to find the right man for the job. We were thinking that you inherit the title of Earl now, instead of when your father gets old.” answered Claudia.

That was the day all of Leo’s dreams came tumbling down. He felt sorrow, and anger beyond words. Often, even to this day, he felt those emotions and thought ‘but what about what I want?!’ or something similar. Leo wanted to become many things, but Earl was never one of them. At his age, children often thought of games and many other fun things, not how to manage a huge corporation that sells just about everything, from tea to books to toys. As all his hopes and dreams shattered, Leo stared open-mouthed at his mother, feeling rage, and thinking of all things lost. He felt tears rushing to his eyes, but he didn’t want his mother to see them.

Closing his book and laying it down on the bench gently, Leo got up and ran away from the mansion as fast as he could. His mother stared after him, shocked at his reaction, then ran inside to tell her husband and the butler what had happened. They were both shocked. James reacted first. He got up, excused himself, then ran from the mansion as well, looking for Leo. Will James find his new young master?

Meanwhile, Leo ran miles away from the mansion. He found a spot in the forest that had a beautiful, yet rather small river. The waterfall was rushing down the rocks, with trees, rocks, and flowers all over the place. He sat down on one of the rocks, letting his tears fall as steadily as the waterfall.

Within half an hour, James found the exact spot where Leo was. James watched him for a while, trying to figure out why exactly Leo was crying. Then he remembered how, when he was young, he had his dreams shattered by his mother dying, and leaving him to fend for himself. James walked over to Leo, and put his hand on Leo’s shoulder.

“Young master, are you alright?” James asked, although he knew the answer.  
“D-don’t call me that.” answered Leo, sniffing while trying to hide his tears. James nodded and said nothing, understanding how Leo felt.

After a while, James led Leo back to the estate. When they got back, Leo’s mother started fussing over him, and then the two parents left Leo in James’ care. James has been taking care of Leo ever since then, and then they recruited Felicia.

~ Flashback End ~

Leo pushed the memory back into his head, and greeted his parents.

“Leon, I would like you to meet your twin sister, Lillian.” said Claudia, with a smile, hoping her two children would get along.  
“Hello Lillian, a pleasure to meet you.” greeted Leo, not sure of what to say.  
“Hello Leon, a pleasure to meet you as well.” replied Lillian, rather shyly.

Felicia walked into the room, carrying a tray of tea and sweets that looked rather heavy. James immediately ran over to help her, with the fear of her dropping the tray in front of Lord and Lady Grey.

After the tea and explaining the arrangements to both Leo and Lillian, Lord and Lady Grey left, and no one knew when they would come back. What if the twins didn’t get along? What if they couldn’t stand each other? Both Leo and Lillian had questions, for their parents and for each other, but were too shy to ask.


	9. Chapter 9

The next day, James went to wake Leo, while Felicia woke Lillian, each carrying a tray. James went into Leo’s room and opened the curtains, saying “Wake up young lord, it is morning,”. Meanwhile, Felicia, excited to finally be in charge of serving breakfast, and the fact that there is another female in the mansion, knocked on Lillian’s door to hear a “Come in” from the inside. Surprised the young female was already awake, she went inside. Lillian was sitting up in her bed reading a book, clad in a crisp white nightdress.

“Good morning, young mistress,” greeted Felicia, setting down the tray by the nightstand, and then moving to open the curtains.  
“Good morning miss,” replied Lillian, politely, “Thank you for the breakfast.”  
“Oh, it’s nothing, really, I hope you enjoy it,” said a surprised and blushing Felicia.

As Lillian finished her breakfast, Felicia asked “Which gown would you like to wear today?”, holding up two gowns. In one hand, she held a beautiful dress that was one of the plainer ones in the wardrobe (click here, please), and another one that was slightly fancier (click here, please) in the other.

Looking as if she couldn’t decide, Felicia said “Or perhaps you would like a different one?”. Shaking her head, Lillian said “No, i’ll take the light blue one, please,”. Lillian got up, and Felicia handed her the gown.

“Oh that’s right! The shoes, I forgot.” said Felicia, blushing at her forgetfulness.  
“No, its fine, I can do it myself.” replied Lillian, with a kind smile.  
“Alright then, I’ll be outside the door if you need me,” said Felicia, bowing and then she turned around to leave.  
“Thank you,” said Lillian in a small voice, which Felicia thought was peculiar.

As Lillian got dressed, picking a pretty pair of white flats, Leo was served breakfast.

“Young lord, are you unhappy that Lillian is here?” asked James.  
“Of course not, it's just that I don’t know what to think,” replied Leo, “and stop calling me young master!”  
“I apologize young master, but you know I never will stop calling you that,” smirked James, teasing Leo.

Leo and James had more of a brother to brother relationship than a master to butler relationship. Leo loved pranking James, and James would counter by teasing, which is why Leo didn’t like James calling him ‘young master’.

Both twins finished dressing (Leo in a dark blue shirt and black pants and shoes) and made their way out of their rooms with the same thought in their head: ‘Will he/she like me? Will we be close, as though we’ve never been separated?’ and other, similar thoughts, like, for example, Leo wondered if they would have a similar relationship like him and James? Then, they met by the stairs, staring at each other. Leo, wearing dark clothes while Lillian was clad in lighter clothes. How could they possibly get along? They were as different as day and night. Would they get along personality-wise? Felicia, the blond haired, lavender eyed maid and James, the black haired, green eyed butler certainly got along, but would they?


	10. Chapter 10

“Er… Good morning,” greeted Leo, breaking the awkward silence.  
“Yes, good morning,” replied Lillian, unsure of what to say.  
“Do you like it here so far?” asked Leo, wondering if that is the right thing to say.  
“Yes, very much. Felicia here is wonderful,” replied Lillian.  
“Th-thank you milady” stuttered Felicia, blushing while bowing low. James and Leo both smirked. A guest at the Grey manor never - not EVER - praised Felicia. Lillian smiled gently.

An awkward silence spread again. Everyone was fidgeting but James, who remained calm. Noting that ideas of what to say ran out quickly, James asked Lillian “Do you like to read, young mistress?”.

“Yes, very much so,” replied Lillian, still with a smile. It was as if she never stopped smiling, however, Leo saw a hint of sadness in her eyes, perhaps even fear. He wondered what she really felt, and if anyone else noticed. He made a mental note to ask James.

“Lovely. Would you like me to escort you to the library?” asked James.  
“Yes please,” replied Lillian.  
“Young master, would you like to come?” James asked Leo.  
“Yes,” replied Leo.  
“Please follow me,” said James, beckoning to both twins and Felicia.

James escorted them to the library. After quite a walk, they went through tall, black doors. It was the entrance to the library, which was ginormous. The walls were white, with back bookcases and tables. This library had 2 floors, with a high ceiling. There were multiple windows, with a balcony on the 2nd floor. There were curtains on every window. Which were dark green with black fastenings, and a hint of silver. The floor was very dark brown hardwood, with dark green rugs covering certain areas. There were many, many types of chairs and couches, with either black, white, or green colorings. All the small details were silver. Of course, we must not forget the books. There were books of every genre, type, author, shape and color. Hundreds upon hundreds of books. Some were ancient, or in another language. Any book you could possibly imagine was in that library. It was simply marvelous.

Lillian gazed at the library in astonishment. Leo, whom was looking at her, noticed, and smiled. She must have never seen anything like it. He truly hoped they would get along. Felicia, whom hasn’t been in the library much, gazed around in wonder as well. Jame, on the other hand, simply watched everyone else, looking at their reactions, as if he expected it all. He was quite amused.

“How do you like it, young mistress?” asked James, breaking the silence.  
“It-its wonderful! I’ve never seen anything like it!” exclaimed Lillian, confirming Leo’s theory.  
“I’m glad you like it, sister,” said Leo.

Lillian turned slightly to look at him, whom looked exactly like her, despite the fact that they were different genders. Despite his usual, cold appearance, he was very kind. His strong features softened looking at her, and both James and Felicia, while Lillain’s feature were always light and friendly. One of them was dark, while the other was light, metaphorically speaking of course. She nodded with a smile.

They all set off looking for books. Leo picked a mystery novel, Lillian a romance novel, Felicia a fantasy novel, and James chose a horror novel. Each chose a chair that they liked, and sat down to read, enjoying a moment of peace and relaxation.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Black Butler.


End file.
